Home Office

Cybercrime: Home Office

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the current risk to the Home Office of a cyber attack; and (2) whether adequate resources are in place to respond to that risk.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Like all major government departments, the Home Office assesses threat from a range of different threat actors. The department uses this information to inform its risk assessments and action plans, both operational and tactical. Risk assessments are updated periodically and whenever a change in the perceived threat is noted.The Home Office utilises a tiered system of risk assessment covering tactical (system level), operational (business level) and strategic (departmental level) cyber security risks. The Executive Committee has direct visibility of the Department’s strategic cyber security risk and mitigation plans.The Home Office deploys a range of controls designed to provide defence in depth for our systems, which are modelled against the advice provided by the National Cyber Security Centre and the Government’s Minimum Cyber Security Standard. The status of these controls is under continual review by the Office of the Chief Information Security Officer, which routinely works with delivery teams to ensure that controls are practical, applicable and effective.Robust cyber security capability requires continued funding and the availability of suitably qualified and experienced personnel. The Office of the Chief Information Security Officer is resourced for the requirements identified for FY 2021-22, balancing the need for investment against cost effectiveness for the tax payer.

Right of Abode: Hong Kong

Lord Craig of Radley: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer from Baroness Williams of Trafford on 14 May 2020 (HL3768) and the letter sent by the Minister for Future Borders and Immigration on 9 June 2020 in the response to the letter from Lord Craig of Radley on 19 March 2020, whether they have made a decision on the requests of 64 Hong Kong Military Service Corps veterans for right of abode in the UK.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Under the British Nationality Selection Scheme, introduced in 1990 and run until 1 July 1997, a limited number of Hong Kong Military Service Corps personnel who were settled in Hong Kong could apply to register as British citizens.We are giving careful consideration to representations made on behalf of those former Hong Kong Military Service Corps personnel who were unable to obtain citizenship through the selection scheme.Hong Kong Military Service Corps personnel, who hold British National (Overseas) citizenship, may be eligible for the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa which opens on 31 January and provides a route to settlement in the UK.

Department for Transport

British Transport Police: Coronavirus

Baroness Harris of Richmond: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to includeBritish Transport Police officers in the first round of those receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advised that Phase 1 of the vaccination programme should target individuals in order of age and risk. The vaccination programme will build up in the weeks and months ahead and extend to more and more people. It is likely a number of transport workers and British Transport Police will be vaccinated in Phase 1 due to their age or underlying health conditions. The JCVI have recommended that vaccination of those at increased risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 due to their occupation should be a priority in the next phase, including British Transport Police and Transport workers.

Railways: Fares

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Transport Focus Fairer fares: the future of rail commutingpublished on 18 August 2020, in particular the recommendationto trial flexi-season tickets and other marketing initiatives to encourage rail travel as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted; and what discussions they have had with railway operators about conducting such trials.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: The Department welcomes the Transport Focus report on the future of rail commuting post-Covid and considered it together with a range of surveys and evidence on expected future commuting patterns.We are working closely with industry to develop a solution that offers better value and convenience for those who commute flexibly and will provide further details in due course.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Festival UK* 2022

Lord Lexden: To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in planning Festival UK 2022;and whether events related to that Festival will be held in all countries of the UK.

Baroness Barran: In October last year we announced the 30 teams that have been selected to take part in the Festival R&D Project. This has provided paid work to our creative sectors, and an opportunity for them to work in new collaborations.The 30 teams include two from Scotland, two from Northern Ireland, and two from Wales, and two from England. The remaining 22 teams are cross-UK teams, with representatives from at least two of the nations. They bring an extraordinary breadth of knowledge and creativity from the very best of our country’s creative talent. The final 10 teams will be announced this year.

Football: Ethnic Groups

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the Football Association in the recruitment of BAME referees ingrassroots football.

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce a racial diversity threshold for boardrooms of all football organisations.

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Football Association about increasing racial diversity amongst football managers.

Baroness Barran: The Government is in regular dialogue with the Football Association (FA) across a range of matters, including diversity. We welcomed the launch of the FA’s ‘Football Leadership Diversity Code’ which is a step in the right direction to ensure English football better represents our modern and diverse society, on and off the pitch. The Code commits clubs to tackling inequality, including hiring targets, across senior leadership positions, broader team operations and coaching roles. The FA has also committed to following this with a version adapted for the National League System and grassroots clubs in Spring 2021.Ministers discussed the Code with the FA, as well as other matters including tackling discrimination, in a roundtable with key football stakeholders in November 2020.The Government is also committed to working with all sports to ensure opportunities to progress are open to all, from athletes to administrators, to board members. As an example of this, in July 2020 Sport England and UK Sport announced a joint review of the Code for Sports Governance. The Code sets out the levels of transparency, accountability and financial integrity required from those who ask for government and National Lottery funding. It currently says that organisations must show a "strong and public commitment" to progressing ethnic diversity. However, it is right to review this to ensure that opportunities to progress are open to all. The Government will be working with UK Sport and Sport England to set new expectations and ensure the sport sector leads by example.However, there is still progress to be made and the Government will continue to liaise closely with the football authorities on their efforts to improve diversity in the sport.

Department of Health and Social Care

Asthma: Health Services

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to develop a national comprehensive severe asthma guideline to ensure that people with severe asthma are identified and treated correctly.

Lord Bethell: NHS England and NHS Improvement have recently updated their specialised commissioning service specification for managing difficult and severe asthma. A copy of the service specification is attached.Specialised Respiratory Services (pdf, 435.1KB)

Treasury

EU Budget: Contributions

Lord Green of Deddington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total UK net public sector contributions to the EU/EC budget between 1991 and 2019 at real 2019 prices.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: The total UK Net Public Sector Contributions to the EU budget during the period 1991 to 2019, adjusted to real 2019 prices, is equal to £182.6 billion (average £6.3 billion per annum). This figure does not include receipts received by private UK entities, which would further reduce the UK’s net contribution.

Coronavirus: Government Assistance

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the total daily cost of their COVID-19 financial support packages.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: In their November 2020 forecast, the Office for Budget Responsibility estimated that costs associated with COVID-19 related support was approximately £280 billion. The OBR will publish a new estimate when they release their next forecast at the Budget on the 3 March.

Self-employed: Coronavirus

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide financial support to those registered as self-employed who were excluded from previous COVID-19 financial support schemes.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: The Government has provided, and will continue to provide, generous support to the self-employed during the COVID-19 pandemic through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS). The third grant, combined with up to £14,070 worth of support for each individual from the first and second grants, makes the SEISS one of the most generous schemes for the self-employed in the world. The Government continues to take a flexible approach and keeps all impacts and policies under review. Details of the fourth SEISS grant will be available in due course. The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme is one part of a substantial package of support available for the self-employed. Those ineligible for the SEISS Grant Extension may still be eligible for other elements of the support available. The Universal Credit standard allowance has been temporarily increased for 2020-21 and the Minimum Income Floor relaxed for the duration of the crisis, so that where self-employed claimants' earnings have fallen significantly, their Universal Credit award will have increased to reflect their lower earnings. In addition to this, they may also have access to other elements of the package, including Bounce Back loans, tax deferrals, rental support, mortgage holidays, self-isolation support payments, and other business support grants.

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend the furlough scheme beyond 30 April.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: As the Chancellor announced on 17 December 2020, the Government will provide a further update on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme at the Budget on 3 March.

UK Trade with EU

Lord Jones of Cheltenham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on consumers of EU-based companies suspending deliveries to the UK because of documentation and taxation requirements for imported goods following the end ofthe transition period for the UK’s departure from the EU.

Lord Agnew of Oulton: As with all new tax measures the Government includes its assessment of the impacts of the changes in Tax Information and Impact Notes. Notes for measures recently legislated for in the Taxation (Post-transition Period) Act were published alongside that legislation.